..Beneath the radar of the corporate music world there are gems to be found. Greg Greenway is a multi-faceted one. A rare combination of instrumental expertise, a soulful and moving singer, powerful poet, and sparkling entertainer, Greenway is one of those difficult-to-categorize performers who have found a home in the modern acoustic genre. Originally from Richmond, VA, he moved to Boston for its rich Folk Music tradition and has become one of its most unique and superlative emissaries. Put simply, he is one of the finest entertainers you’ll ever see. Musically, he draws inspiration from all over the map--gospel, rock, blues, Jazz, and world music. But his center is in the singer/songwriter tradition that traces it roots all the way back to the social awareness of Woody Guthrie. His central appeal is that it all comes through the singular lens of Greenway’s humanity and his easy affinity for the audience.
He has been described as "one of the strongest, and finest voices in folk music." The Boston Globe wrote, "Confessional one moment, rambunctiously disarming the next, few modern folk singers can own a coffeehouse stage as completely as Greenway." Another reviewer perhaps described it best, "A profoundly rich poet and musician. Folk Music is too narrow a description." And he has legendary energy. His visit to the Civil Rights Museum in Memphis yielded his own composition that rises powerfully into U2’s Pride/In the Name of Love. It is a hair raising, riveting anthem that embodies Greenway’s passion and his gift for framing social issues. It is a show stopping event, couched in a presentation of high spirited give and take of such good humor that audiences unfailingly walk away uplifted.
Clearly, he’s on someone’s radar. Among Greenway’s performance highlights are a show at Carnegie Hall in the New York Singer/Songwriter Festival which was rebroadcast on NPR’s World Cafe, an appearance on nationally syndicated Mountain Stage, and a show at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame honoring Phil Ochs. In August of 2000, Greenway was seen world wide on CNN’s World Beat in a segment on socially conscious artists. He was filmed at the Clearwater Hudson River Revival Festival performing along with Folk legend Pete Seeger and others. Greenway was recently featured on the weekend edition of NPR’s All Things Considered.
Greenway now has five critically acclaimed solo releases: A Road Worth Walking Down (nominated for two Boston Music Awards), Singing For the Landlord (top five CDs for 1995 on the Internet Folk DJ list), Mussolini’s Head(1998), Something Worth Doing (2001), and most recently, Greg Greenway: Live (2003). He has been included on numerous compilations as well, including Putumayo World Music’s Shelter, Christine Lavin’s Big Times In A Small Town and Laugh Tracks, Sliced Bread’s Phil Ochs tribute CD, What’s That I Hear, and the compendium of disrespectful car songs from NPR’s Car Talk, CarTalk CarTunes.
Even as he continues to tour nationally, Greenway has found new avenues through which to channel his art. He has become a producer, currently working his second project, and teaches workshops on song writing, performance, and guitar. He also teaches a class entitled Music and Social Change, illuminating the history that bore songs and the songs that bore history.
